Final Reflection

Out of my whole experience, the thing that sticks out to me is that you don't have to be the smartest or well connected person in the world to be an entrepreneur. Everyday people make their own businesses, and that you can still start your venture with a huge amount of risk. This class has taught me how to analyze a potential product and how I could possibly improve it, which takes apart the scariest part, actually knowing what you are doing. My most joyous experience was when I finally got the hang of how the class worked, because online classes are new to me and it was a bigger deal than it is now. I am most proud of being able to miss an entire week on vacation and still (somewhat) keep up with the class. At this moment in time I believe I have an entrepreneurial mindset just because I do well on the fly and I now have more confidence in myself and how I can handle any problem or obstacle. My best advice for someone taking this class is taking the exercises seriously, just because they can help you find out so much more about yourself than you think.

Venture Concept No.2

The next place the wireless charging system is heading is toward bigger businesses and offices. The wireless charging system started out with the goal to charge as many people's phones at a time as possible, and we want to continue that and be able to put out the best product with the newest technological capabilities.
I asked customers what we should be doing next and it  surprised me. Instead wanting charging on a larger scale, they wanted it to be smaller. They recommended that we start working on a device that will stick to your phone case that will wirelessly charge your phone. Another suggestion that falls into line with that direction is a portable charger sized device that s student could keep in their backpack while in class that would charge their individual phone while it is in their pocket, without the need for a charger cord. When I asked the customers about the system with the larger charging capabilities they said it would be useful, but they feel like they would personally get more use out of their own individual one.
The future path for growth inside the existing market lays in catering to the needs of our customers. I think the best way to do this  is to go smaller. That decision isn't permanent, we will most likely make larger models, but for now it seems like going for the personal wireless charging systems will be better.

After reflecting on my first venture the main thing I need to focus on is not making the product fit into a market, but I should try and design it to fit into a market. Another takeaway from the student feedback was that my personality will lead the way in my venture. I feel like I will ultimately make all of the decisions when it comes to the future of my venture. Some main feedback I got from the interviewees is that the specifications and capabilities are more important than anything. All of the people wanted to know the range, how much it cost, and how many phones it can charge, so I know I'm going to have to work with the numbers.

I have changed my concept to cater to families instead of businesses, and have been way more specific about my ideal customer.

Free Money

Free Money Exercise:

• For the exercise I went to Turlington because there is an ample amount of people, especially because they are walking and distracted.
• I'm going to approach people to are walking on the way to class.
• I'm going to start the conversation by saying "hey can I ask you a question real quick"
• My plan for the conversation is to say "can I ask you a question" and then tell them that I am a bagger at Publix and I took a dollar tip yesterday and I want to get rid of it because I feel bad for taking it.
• I think I will be able to give away all five of them.

Reflection: When people are doing their own thing, and you come into their space they get defensive and don't want to talk. I dressed like a student so I wasn't that intimidating and people were more reluctant to talk to me. However one person who seemed very concerted. She just didn't say that much, and said "no thank you I'm not interested". This made me realize how hard it is to sell people on something and how protective they are. She automatically thought something was up, and didn't even know that was trying to give her a dollar.

My Exit Strategy

1. My exit plan is to play it by ear. Most likely, since the wireless charging system will take a lot of capital to start up, so it will also take a lot of time to recuperate the initial investment. Once it gets to the point where the wireless charging system is making money I will probably hold onto the business for another 5 or so years and then sell it and cash in. Now if the business is doing exceptional, and I'm enjoying what I'm doing then I will hold onto it for as long as I can, but if it is just chugging along and doing okay and taking up my time then I will most likely sell it.
2. I selected this because it is pretty flexible, and it allows me to make the decision when I get to that time. Most likely a lot of things will be different then, and the business could potentially be worth a lot. It would be silly to plan for things that far in advance when they could be so different and all of that worrying and planning would be for nothing.
3. This decision mirrors how I plan on running my venture. I will ultimately have goals that I want to complete, but when it comes down to it I'll have to make the game time decisions during the game, and not in the locker-room before the game.

Reading Reflection No.3

The book that I haven't read that I'm choosing to do my reflection on is The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck

1. The general theme of the book is that people's mindsets determine where they go an how successful they will be. If someone has a growth mindset, they will continue to grow, but if someone has a negative mindset, they will become stagnant.
2. This book enhanced what I have learned in Ent 3003 because it highlighted the importance of strong character, and how important it is to train your character to become successful.
3. If I had to design an exercise for this class it would require everyone to try the "growth mindset".  It would be a blog post in which the student has to explain 5 times in the last month they have used the growth mindset to better themselves.
4. My biggest 'aha' moment in this book was the teacher and coach section. When the author explained how the use of language when a person is learning can effect how they perceive themselves.

Celebrating Failure

1. In spring semester I took Precalculus and as expected it was pretty hard. Right as I got back from spring break I had a lot going on in school and in my life and I nearly failed the test when we got back. However, because of this bad test grade I was determined to get a good grade in the class. I showed up for lectures, studied more, and ended up getting B's on the next two exams and finished with a B+
2. What I learned from this is that I should have gotten more work done during spring break so I would have had more time to study for pre calc when I got back. I learned no matter how good you are at something(in my case I am good with time management) you can always get  better and improve.
3. This failure was pretty devastating. I had a speech and an interview that same week along with work. I was tremendously overwhelmed with all of this going on, and I didn't do good on the test or the interview. It was a pretty disappointing week and it was hard to rebound from it, but it was a good experience to learn from. I wouldn't want to take another risk like this, but after this class I would feel more comfortable in the high pressure situation. 

Whats Next?

Existing Market

The next place the wireless charging system is heading is toward bigger businesses and offices. The wireless charging system started out with the goal to charge as many people's phones at a time as possible, and we want to continue that and be able to put out the best product with the newest technological capabilities.

I asked customers what we should be doing next and it  surprised me. Instead wanting charging on a larger scale, they wanted it to be smaller. They recommended that we start working on a device that will stick to your phone case that will wirelessly charge your phone. Another suggestion that falls into line with that direction is a portable charger sized device that s student could keep in their backpack while in class that would charge their individual phone while it is in their pocket, without the need for a charger cord. When I asked the customers about the system with the larger charging capabilities they said it would be useful, but they feel like they would personally get more use out of their own individual one.

The future path for growth inside the existing market lays in catering to the needs of our customers. I think the best way to do this  is to go smaller. That decision isn't permanent, we will most likely make larger models, but for now it seems like going for the personal wireless charging systems will be better.

New Market

A Radically different market to enter into would be airlines. With wifi being present on planes in the coming years many people will end up needing to charge their phones on board the plane. Instead of setting up an entire electrical system on the plane with outlets they could install the wireless charging system on board.

I would create value in the market by reducing airlines costs, and making the customers on airlines more happy.

After the interviews it was clear that the charging capabilities would have to be way larger than the ambitious 25 people for the "large" version of my product. This means we would have to get some help from the airlines in creating this device, or wait a couple of years before we develop the technology.

The thing that I learned about this new market is that different markets need different needs. The airline market would require large wireless charging capabilities. This made me realize it is going to take time to enter these new markets, and that is okay. I would rather be able to sit back and know that we are developing a competent product that will be ready for new markets years from now than worry about releasing it now.

The new market doesn't seem to be as attractive as before, but it definitely will be lucrative in the future  I just need to be patient and get my technology up to standards before pursing this side market.I also learned to stay to the confines of the product and to not try and push to do things that the product is not capable of right now.

Venture Concept No. 1 The Wireless Charging System

The opportunity behind the wireless charging system is the convivence factor of being able to charge multiple phones at once in a home or business, without having to have them plugged in or tied down in any way. The people who have the need are households with kids who are home a lot and use their phones a lot. This type of household could use this product because they will no longer have to worry about losing phone chargers and jockeying for charger position throughout the house. The nature of the need arises when the customer's phone needs to be charged at any time, they can connect to the wireless charging system, and have their phone charged in the background, without it being an immediate issue. This allows the kids at home, or the employees at the office to focus om their most immediate concerns, and not just how much battery they have left on their phone. The changes in this environment that create this opportunity is people’s increasing interest in goods and services that aren’t necessary, but convenient. The modern consumer values products that makes their daily life easier, and that is exactly what the wireless charging system does. The market for this product is middle class families and business owners, and there really aren’t geographical boundaries. If a person has a smart phone and wants to have it seamlessly charged at anytime in the day this product is for them. Customers are currently satisfying this need through carrying a cord with them throughout the day or a portable charger, and I feel like customers would be pretty open to the idea of the wireless charging system. I would say this opportunity is bigger now than it will ever be. Many people want a better way to reliably charge their phones, and soon companies will start to come out with ways to satisfy the need. I would say the window of opportunity will be open for another five years before the market becomes saturated with products similar to what mine does.

The wireless charging system is incrementally innovative just because there are already good ways for people to charge their phones, but this is just a quality of life improvement. I am selling the wireless charging system with a $200 price tag. When you buy the wireless charging system, one of our trained technicians will come and install it at your home or business. Once installed, up to 12 people can wirelessly charge their phones through Bluetooth with this device. Like stated previously, it is mainly a convivence good in the fact that is nice to have, but it is definitely not a necessity.

My innovation will address the problem of people’s phones dying frequently by providing a constant and convenient wireless charge while the product is turned on. Customers will want to buy my product for the convivence factor. A mother of 3 kids aged 8-16 doesn’t have the time, energy, or patience to keep up with 6 or more phone chargers is the ideal customer for this product. The number of new chargers she has to buy a year (due to the fact her kids lose so many) would total to be way more than the cost of the wireless charging system. Besides saving money, the wireless charging system will also save the mom stress. With 3 hyperactive kids always on their phones/tablets in the house besides jockeying for chargers they also fight for outlets. The wireless charging system would completely eliminate that scenario because there would be no need for chargers, or to fight for outlets to plug the charger into because it is all done wirelessly. The only real competitors that I have are portable charger companies, but they are priced at a point way cheaper, and do not satisfy the charging need to the extent that the wireless charging system does. Customer support and experience would play a pretty big role in promoting the product. In my opinion, the best success we are going to have with getting the product out there is having a child go over to their friend’s house and use our system and go home and tell their parents about it. Being based in Orlando, I feel like I could utilize my local contacts to get the ball rolling and let word of mouth keep that ball rolling. I would organize my business by first hiring another company in the central Florida area to make the charging system units for me, and if it was too expensive I would ultimately end up doing it myself. I would have no more than 10 employees, and most of them would be in charge of the manufacturing, and I would do the marketing and sales myself.

I think my most important element is going to be my personality. When I start something with a certain goal in mind I will relentlessly work until that goal is complete, and I will give it everything I have. I feel like these characteristics will help me continue on with my venture, even when everything gets tough. The next thing I have planned for my venture is to create a wireless charging system that can be used at restaurants and bigger business that has the capacity to charge up to 25 phones at the same time. As for me, in the next five years I see myself in a career field that I enjoy, and already emerging as a leader in my position. This first venture will give me the confidence to show me that I am an independent person that can accomplish great things if I put my mind to it.

My Unfair Advantage

Resource 1: Patent 

Valuable: If I can get a patent on my product it will make it infinitely valuable because I am the only one that will be allowed to use that kind of technology and will have a competitive advantage in the market. 

Rare: A patent would definitely make what I have even rarer.

Imitatable: The product would not be so unique if I were to acquire a patent it could not be imitated by anyone else, and if it was it probably wouldn't have the same capabilities.

Non-Substitutable: There really isn't a way to substitute a patent.

Resource 2: Location: Orlando

Valuable: Orlando is a growing hub of technology and industry and would be a great place to start the business, especially with all of my connections in the area.

Rare: Orlando is known for being a tolerant and upcoming city and will attract a lot more potential contacts and customers.

Imitatable: Orlando is such a unique city in Florida because it is one of the only main cities not on the coast, and this is because its economy is moving away from manufacturing and toward more technology oriented[e1]  industries.

Non-substitutable: There are other cities like Orlando that are up and coming in the tech industries.

Resource 3: My adaptability

Valuable:  It will allow me to keep the business a float while the market is changing, and the company faces adversity.

Rare: A lot of people don't want to change, and in that way,  I feel like it is a rare quality

Imitatable: it is imitatable, and a lot of other people have this quality, but not everyone has it. I feel like this quality will assist me in achieving my goals.

Non-substitutable: This quality really isn't substitutable, you just have to have it or you don't.

Resource 4: Social Capital in Orlando

Valuable: Helps with connections to get my business started.

Rare: My parents have a vast amount of connections with various entrepreneurs that have started their own businesses.

Imitatable: No one has the exact network that I do therefore it cannot be imitated.

Non-substitutable: It could be substituted with other people’s social capital.

Resource 5: My Determination 

Valuable: It is very valuable and will keep me going when things get tough.

Rare: It is not that rare, but very valuable.

Imitatable: It is one of those things you either have it or you don't.

Non-substitutable: It cannot be substituted, like stated before.

Resource 6: A unique product 

Valuable: There is nothing like it on the market, therefore it makes the product unique and special.

Rare: The uniqueness of the product already makes it rare by default.

Imitatable: With it being the only product on the market that can wirelessly charge phones, this makes it special, but it can be imitated.

Non-substitutable: It definitely could be substituted by a portable charger or charging your phone normally.

Resource 7: The ability to see from many different perspectives 

Valuable: This is valuable because it allows me to see the product from a competitor's viewpoint, or that of a customer.

Rare: I feel like it is something that is hard to do, and therefore, something that not that many people can do.

Imitatable: Not really it is another all or nothing sort of deal.

Non-substitutable: Not really it is another all or nothing sort of deal. 

Resource 8: Positive Attitude

Valuable: This may seem cheesy, but a positive attitude can get you through a lot of tough situations.

Rare: I think it is rare, many people like to complain, and blame their circumstances on other things.

Imitatable: Determination is similar in the same aspect because they both keep you going.

Non-substitutable: When it comes down to it, nothing can truly substitute a positive attitude.

Resource 9: Keep Manufacturing Local

Valuable: Keep the jobs in the community.

Rare: Not that many technology companies do it.

Imitatable: Plenty of other smaller community-based businesses do it, but usually not tech companies.

Non-substitutable: You can’t really substitute being local, you either are, or you aren’t.

Resource 10: The people

Valuable: Finding good employees is very important, and I have a few go to people that I would include when I start my venture.

Rare: It isn’t that rare, but it is vital for success, as many other businesses have good associates.

Imitatable: You cannot imitate any person’s exact decision-making capabilities, or their personality.

Non-substitutable: You cannot really substitute good people, you either have them or you don’t.

I believe that my unfair advantage is my determination, no matter what the circumstances are I will get the job done and not ley my venture down.

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 [e1

Elevator Pitch No.3

Reflection on Feedback: The number one piece of feedback I got from my last pitch from everyone was to include the price. Since I have no idea how much it would cost I estimated the price at $200 which is probably a little low, but at least I still have a number to work with. Everyone seems to like the part of the pitch where I talked about phones taking over the world, but I decided to take that out just because it took up a lot of precious time I could have spent better explaining the practicality of the product. I feel like this time in the pitch is better spent especially since it is obvious to the average person that phones are taking over the world.
What I changed: I put the estimated the price in, and took out the anecdote about phones taking over the world for greater focus on the features of the product.

Reading Reflection No. 2

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big, Scott Adams 

1. The general argument of the book is that failure is not a scary thing, and that it is necessary in order to learn from your mistakes and achieve success. The book is more of a general mindset book, and not on that specifically tells you how to run your own business.
2. The book connected what I have learned from ENT 3003 that all these exercises we have been doing are for a reason, we are supposed to see that out target market was wrong, or our assumptions about consumer behavior were wrong. Scott Adams wants us to know that failure is okay, and it is in fact essential.
3. If I had to design an exercise for this class centered around the book it would be to go out and try new things to see how well you can do them. But go out the next day and try them again, and you will begin to learn that the more you practice something, the more you fail, the better you will get.
4. My biggest 'aha' moment throughout the book was when  he was explaining how his own failures lead to his success as a comic artist and who it was essential. This made me realize that I need to go out of my comfort zone more in order to see more success in all aspects of my life.

Growing our Social Capital

Domain Expert in my Industry

1. His name is Steve and he recently sold his software company. He lives in Orlando, Florida.
2. This person fills the domain expert slot because as a software developer, he has technical skills that he may be able to utilize to help me develop my product.
3. I found him through my mom, because he was a friend of hers, but I had never met him before.
4. I went over to his house and asked him of the idea would be possible given his knowledge, and he said he was going to look into it and get back to me. The return expectation is a possible summer internship with his new venture next summer.
5. Including this person in my network will allow me to have a go to person to ask about the technical skills behind my product.

Expert in my Market

1. Her name is Susie, and she is from Clermont, Florida. She works in IT, but also has a venture with a co worker where they make portable chargers.
2. This person fills the expert in my market slot because since there aren't any wireless chargers out there yet the portable charger is the closest thing to it. Additionally, the technology does the same thing so I feel like I could learn a lot from her.
3. I found her through my dad, it was one of his old co workers.
4. I called her on the phone yesterday and asked her some questions about her venture and the market in general. The return expectation is nothing really since she is good friends with my dad.
5. Including this person in my network will allow me to  have someone who is already established in the market to contact if I ever have any questions.

Supplier to my Industry

1. Her name is Cathy and she has a technology distribution company based out of Tampa, Florida.
2. This person fills the Supplier to my industry because she distributes phones, chargers, portable chargers, and all other kinds of technology in the Tampa area.
3. I found her through Susie, this is who helped her get started in the portable charging field.
4. I talked to her this morning on the phone and I didn't ask her of anything I just merely picked her brain for 5 minuets.
5. Including this person to my network will allow me to have someone who has a bigger business than Susie, and who may be more of an expert in the field of general technology, rather than just portable chargers.

Reflect: This exercise made it very clear to me that it is infinitely easier to hit the ground running if you have a few established contacts in the industry you're planning to go into.

Idea Napkin No.2

Idea Napkin No. 2

You: My name is Ethan Hood and I'm a business student at the University of Florida. My experiences in running and cross-country specifically have shown me how to lead a team, and how I am a capable and driven individual. I would see this business playing a major role in my life. No matter what I do I am present in the moment and passionate about it, especially if I enjoy what I'm doing, and my business would be no different.
What are you offering your customers: I am offering my customers an alternative way to charge their cell phones and tablets, but on a larger scale, being able to connect multiple devices to the system at once. It is more of a convince because of the fact it seamlessly charges multiple devices without  having to have multiple outlets or cords.
Who are you offering it to: The target demographic is middle income families with two or more kids aged 8-16. All these customers have kids, and the kids in this age range love to be on their phones and tablets
Why do they care: They care because it is the convenience factor of being able to charge many phones at one time without needing a ton of outlets an charging cords. There is also a lot of value created because phones die so fast now, and the fact that they would be able to be wirelessly charged, and the battery life would no longer be an issue is huge.
What are your competencies: What sets me apart from everyone else is the fact that I make everything meaningful in my life, and everything has a purpose, and this would be especially be true with my business.

All of these elements fit together in a way that clearly defines its role: to charge many phones at the same time. All of the demographics and why people should care are based on the functionality of this device and how it works well to charge multiple phones at once.

Feedback Memo: One main point that I took feedback from was making everything more clear on who my target market was. Another main point that I took into consideration was the narrowing down of the  actual concept and it's functionality, which I described a very specific situation in which it is used.

Customer Avatar

My Ideal Customer 

Here is my ideal customer, it is a 40 year old mom of at least two kids, and she falls under the middle class socioeconomic category. This mom drives a Honda Odyssey and has kids whose ages range from 8-16 years old.  She likes spending time with her kids when she can and she has a part time job and goes the to gym a lot. Whenever her and her husband go out they need to hire a babysitter to watch the kids. The wireless charging system would be a way to keep them consistently entertained while they are gone. She is always looking for things to do to keep her kids busy, and keeping up with the Jones' is one of her favorite thing to look into. The thing her and I have in common is that we both hate that our phones have to be constantly charging, and we both want to do something about it.  We both have the type of personality of getting things done and pleasing those around us.

Elevator Pitch No.2

Reflection of last pitch's feedback: The feedback for my last pitch was mostly positive and the most valuable feedback I got was that I did a good job at explaining the use in many different contexts and settings. However the main criticism I got was the fact I need to get more specific with the explanation of my product and its capabilities. I would love to be able to this but since there is nothing like this in the market it is hard to make predictions. Personally I felt like my last pitch lacked a consistent enthusiasm, so from last time I talked about the qualities and uses for my product that I find more interesting to bring out my enthusiasm.
What did I change?: I changed my inflection and added more hand gestures, because I thought that my other one lacked the life of a truly good elevator pitch.